Pyrelie
by Materia-Blade
Summary: A Pyrelie. The Bane of all human existance. Something higher put it in our unworthy hands and we destroyed humanity with it. Twice in my lifetime it has destroyed humanity. This time.. it will be different. RaAk!
1. Prologue

Pyrelie.  
  
Prologue.  
  
A Pyrelie. A mystic artefact long forgotten with the hazy passage of time. If only it had been remembered. If only it could have been remembered. I'm impressed that I... we.. didn't forget after such a long time.  
  
A Pyrelie is supposedly seen once every four billion years. Quite a long time to be remembered. There are only two persons have managed to live the required time to see and measure this time more than once and the time is roughly 4 billion revelations of the earth around the sun. I am one of those persons. The only thing I am capable of doing is minamizing the damage which failed last time. Keeping that one with the Pyrelie alive was all I managed to do. The rest of humanity was destroyed again. And even that was a glitch.  
  
Every time one appears there is destruction though that is not its purpose. I witnessed the first in my world when I was just a child. Earth even eight billion years ago... even then it was old meaning I can only assume it had occured many times even before I lived. Human scientists now cannot comprehend the fact that there was an explosion that has destroyed humanity more than once. But it did. And humanity was began again by myself... and the second bearer of a Pyrelie.  
  
My name is inpronounceable in English tongue but for a number of years I have been known as simply Syn... I am about eight billion years old roughly. My wife is called Kry. She is around four billion. And both of us look to be about eighteen. Twice I have watched humanty rise. When I was a youth of 17 years is when the Pyrelie entered me.  
  
An amazing display of light, for no known reason, erupted from the sky directly above me. It fell down slowly and I, while in a trance like state, couldn't move. The sky itself expanded into a gigantic hole with smaller rings of more white lights inside the whole making it look like a holy target board of some sort. The center of the circle streched downward and after streching for what seemed like five minutes and recoiled in seconds back to the flat of the sky launching an enourmous ball of white energy. The sky faded back into normal and the ball came hurtling toward me. By the time it got to me, however, it was just a tiny ball of white light. I looked directly at it as my friends watched in horror. The ball entered my right eye and it I was told that it momentarily turned red afterwards. As it entered, and as I fell unconcious, I heard the word, Pyrelie.  
  
I awoke about four hours later. When my mother came to hug me I embraced her. And an enourmous magical dome erupted around us destroying everything and everyone nearby. My mother held me.. completely oblivious to the destruction that I had caused. As was I. When I looked up there was no hospital. No people around for almost the equivalent now of ten acres. The ground hadn't been spared, either. There was no evidence that grass had grown. Just dirt and pits of dirt where tree roots had once been.  
  
Not knowing the cause the people blamed other alien life forms which was common belief at that time.  
  
A week or so later my mother was angry at me. And I lost my temper. I was never a very angry person and when I became angry the Pyrelie became corrupted.  
  
I couldn't hold out. The power consumed me and humanity was destroyed by the foolishness of my youth. Apparently remaining people had lived because only a few thousand years into my lonelyness a ship came to my secluded and green paradise. Humanity had lived and had rebuilt. They were primitive to the great metal boats of my day. Made of wood and powered by wind.  
  
When I had lived there were thriving cities with skyscrapers as tall as you could see. Great metal buildings and electronics and what this civilizations equivalent would be called automobiles existed.  
  
But humanity had survived my destruction. And I mingled with them and watched as they lived and died while I lingered on. For four billion years I watched and they evolved, however not in the way my nation had. No, these developed magic. It was nothing compared to the power of the Pyrelie but It was magic.  
  
From the magic of the my corupted Pyrelie great demons arose. And great Warlocks and Sorceresses. My daughters... Luna and Lina Inverse. I had so much fun watching her, grow and live... and die... Lina.. hah... she had finally bested her sister in the end in the strength of magical arts. But that is not relevent now. They lived around three billion years since the Pyrelie.  
  
Around a billion years later at the peak of this magical civilization it happened again. Another Pyrelie appeared.  
  
I had seven heart attacks in the three weeks after it appeared. The docters and healers were downright baffled at how I had lived and of course I couldn't easily tell them that I had been around for four billion years.  
  
I was determined not to let it be corrupted. A woman was chosen for this. Her name was Liacose. She felt the power and had fortunantly been determined not to use it since the begining having destroyed her own home the day she recived it. After my time in the hospital I found her.  
  
I knew it was corrupting her. I used my own Pyrelie to try to stop the corruption. But It still happened. Instead of the month that It took for me to be corrupted, it took her two years.  
  
It was a climactic battle. The great mages of that time didn't even know what was happening. I had to stop her though. Unfortunantly my weakness had shown more powerful than my four billion years of experience. I had fallen in love with the girl. The fourth girl in my four billion years... and I couldn't bring myself to kill her. In my moment of weakness she imprisoned me in the blind rage of her own corrupted Pyrelie, and humanity, along with all the demon races spawned from my Pyrelie, was destroyed again.  
  
Another two years later she regained the power to release me. All of humanity had been destroyed by her. Having four billion years of training I scanned the entire world for any trace of humanity and there was none left.  
  
Never the less, Humanity began again through our union. Liacose renamed her self Kry. We had Children. And they had children, which yes would be considered very odd today but then it the only option.  
  
After many years our names were forgotten. For four billion more years we had lived. Humanity has since evolved and uses many of the same technological advancements of my youth. It amazes me to know end how they keep evolving differently.  
  
And now... four billion years after the second destruction of humanity, that I know of... another Pyrelie will emerge. And this time I will be ready.  
  
I don't know where the Pyrelie comes from. But four billion years of discussion of our powers and what happened during the time of the corruption has prepared us.  
  
And this time we will not fail. This time... we **will** be ready.  
  
................... 


	2. Just Magic Ink

Chapter One: Just Magic Ink.  
  
"**RANMA SAOTOME PREPARE TO DIE!**" The cry rang out. Of course no one paid attention. The cry was the most common thing in Nerima, save for the cry "Ranma no Baka".  
  
Even Ranma himself didn't pay much attention to it. After all, three punches later and Ryoga was out like a brick.  
  
Ranma had been walking through the Nerima public park at the time of this incident. Fortunantly there had been no water nearby during this incident. It would have undoubtedly found its way to him even in the very much likely event that he would defeat Ryoga. Which he did.  
  
Ever since the battle with Saffron things had basicly gone like this daily. Ranma no longer held himself to the level of his opponants. He went all out if someone attacked him. The decreasing number of attacks from Mousse was testiment to that. Ryoga was still going at it, as he had the endurance to keep getting back up after every fall for years to come.  
  
Unfortunantly for Ranma whether there is water around or not it always seems to find him. A young boy rode by on a bicycle and, having disliked the idea of drinking more water given to him by his mother, tossed a half full water bottle over his head as he passed Ranma.  
  
"Huh... Kami hates me..." Ranma thought. Lately his months were getting even more depressing. His thoughts always strayed to Akane. He had saved her life so many times but simply couldn't allow himself to say **ANYTHING** to her. Every time he tried he would foul it up. Then she would get mad, and he would call her kawaiikune or some other rude name. He didn't want that. He wanted to tell her what he had felt ever since the day he had met her. Well, actually that was a lie. He hadn't loved her since the day he met her but her first words to him... "I'm Akane want to be friends?" Thos ment a whole lot at the time. They still did.  
  
But couldn't...  
  
Reaching the exit of the park he spotted the Nekohaunten.  
  
"I know I shouldn't even go near there, but I need... no... want some hot water really bad." He thought. He pondered for a while on whether it would be so horrible to just go in quick ask for some water and leave.  
  
Unfortunantly Murphy's law wouldn't accept that, he knew. So he opted against it and kept on walking.  
  
Meanwhile.  
  
"Shampoo... Shampoo..." A voice sounded from the room.  
  
"No.. Shampoo sleep now..." She yawned back.  
  
She lay on her bed inside her bedroom at the Nekohaunten. She didn't know who was talking to her and was currently too tired to care. She had been sent on an hour long break after working thirty two and a half hours straight. Ranma hadn't come into the store like she had hoped.  
  
"Shampoo... wake up Shampoo... I need you..." The voice cried out.  
  
"No..! Shampoo sleep now!" Shampoo cried with her eyes closed.  
  
The door cracked open and the light from the outside hallway shone into Shampoo's room. The crack had been aligned direcly with her eyes to inflict the most possible annoyance.  
  
The voice continued on, "Shampoo I need your help with... something important..."  
  
"**SHAMPOO NO WAKE UP**!" She cried. She shot out of her bed angrily.  
  
"Involving Ranma..." The voice finished.  
  
Shampoo had forgotten her sleep.  
  
"Hey! Who you? How you get back here without Great-Grandmother see you!?" She cried as she walked toward the door. "... What about Airen!?"  
  
Shampoo had recently been the object of many very harsh glares from her airen. She wanted only for him to love her and to see that that stupid "Violent Girl" would **NEVER** fit him! But he didn't. He never had.  
  
"I have a preposition for you..." The voice said.  
  
The door creeked open slightly more revealing what appeared to be the persons arm. The most definantly male voice was low and would have been very creepy if Shampoo hadn't been subjected to her great-grandmother's training. That mixed with her own amazon pride of being fearless made this seem not out of the ordinary.  
  
"Come to the door..." The voice ordered.  
  
Shampoo did as comanded without comment.  
  
"Open the door and I will show you..." It said.  
  
She opened the door... and then all went black.  
  
CRASH!!!  
  
As Ranma slowly walked away from the Nekohaunten he heard the unmistakable sound of busting glass. Looking back at the Cat Cafe he saw that it was a chair that had busted through the window.  
  
Ranma rushed to the restaraunt.  
  
"**SHAMPOO**!?" He cried. Yes he was angry with her but he also knew that whatever had thrown the chair through the window couldn't have been the Amazons. They cared too much about their store to do something like that.  
  
As he neared the Nekohaunten more chairs came flying out windows until every single window had been broken.  
  
He dashed into the building.  
  
Only to find that the entire room was full of people. Chatting as if nothing had happened. On second glance he realized that none of the windows were broken at all! On third glance none of the chairs were gone.  
  
"Son-in-" Cologne tried to say. But Ranma had allready dashed out of the building.  
  
He looked where the wooden chair had been and saw nothing out of the ordinary. Checking the other windows around the restaraunt he found everything in order. None of the windows even had a fingerprint.  
  
"What the?" He thought.  
  
Cologne pogoed outside a few moments later to find Ranma thourghly inspecting the windows.  
  
"Son-in-law what is the matter?" She asked.  
  
"Uh... You.. didn't see these windows just bust open by chance did you?" He asked.  
  
"No... no son-in-law." She replied. Her normal curious smirk adorned her face.  
  
"Perhaps you could come in and get some water? To drink possibly? How would these windows shatter son-in-law? They are as strong as steel!" Cologne cried.  
  
"I... I must've imagined it... I suppose... Only A quick drink and I'm gone, ghoul." Ranma resigned himself.  
  
They walked inside the restaraunt. Inside there were about twelve people seated and all but two groups were eating happily. Cologne hopped over the counter and got the food Mousse had prepared and laid out on the counter to the remaining customers. Ranma, meanwhile walked into the kitchen, directly by Mousse and to the sink where she returned herself to her normal form.  
  
Walking out of the kitchen she saw that the old ghoul was sitting behind the counter reading a book. She waved goodbye as Ranma came to the door of the building without even looking up.  
  
Suddenly Shampoo appeared.  
  
"Ranma..." She said in a voice that was not her usual and bouncy tone. Also odd was that she called him Ranma instead of Airen.  
  
"Shampoo?" Cologne asked curious at her odd tone change.  
  
"Ranma follow me..." She said plainly completely ignoring her great-grandmother.  
  
Shampoo walked back into the hallway.  
  
To Cologne's amazement Ranma followed her immediatly upon her departure. His eyes were blank and his expression was unreadable. He walked like a zombie around the counter and into the hallway.  
  
Cologne followed.  
  
Looking into the hallway she saw Ranma enter Shampoo's room.  
  
"Shampoo you are a clever one... I never thought you could use a spell like THAT!" Cologne thought and went back out to the front counter not even thinking that her great-grandaughter may not be in perfect control.  
  
When Ranma entered the room he saw Shampoo.. completely naked.  
  
"Ranma... you want me..?" Shampoo asked still in a voice that had never been heard from her before.  
  
"Shampoo! Your... uh..." Ranma trailed off. Shampoo had him under a spell. He knew that he had never been so tempted in his life. And especially not by her.  
  
"Shampoo I... I wan.." He mouthed.  
  
Shampoo lay on the bed and motioned for Ranma to come and sit beside her.  
  
He did.  
  
"Shampoo... this isn't... funny!" Ranma cried.  
  
"Shampoo no think is funny. Ranma want Shampoo... he can have...If want.." She said.  
  
In one fluid motion she pulled him on top of herself and quickly began unbuttoning his shirt.  
  
Ranma stared into her eyes. They were not her eyes. She licked her lips in a lustful fasion. Rubbed her legs around trying to arouse him. Unbuttoned his shirt with an anxious rush about her. But her eyes were not lustful. They were pleading... straining at something completely unknown to Ranma.  
  
"Shampoo.. I... NO!" He cried and jumped off her.  
  
The temptation to lay back down beside her increased ten fold.  
  
"What did you... do?" He asked angrily.  
  
"Shampoo do nothing... just want Ranma have what he wants... not as Airen even.." Shampoo said in a seductive voice slightly resembling her normal tone.  
  
"Shampoo... I _don't _want... you..." Ranma said in an icy voice and began walking to the door.  
  
"Ranma does want Shampoo.."  
  
The words rolled off her tongue and began to entrance him even more. The more further he walked from her the more difficult the next step was.  
  
His mind told him to go back to her. His unmentionable parts demanded he return to the bed.  
  
His heart told him get the hell outta there before you do something you regret for the rest of your life.  
  
"Ranma... Shampoo just want to give Ranma what know he want!" She cried.  
  
He paid her no attention and exited the room. The temptation was gone.  
  
Somewhere non-existant to mortals... the voice that had tricked Shampoo into this plot rang out.  
  
"Test Passed."  
  
Ranma quickly went to the bathroom and collected his dignity, rebuttoned the top two buttons Shampoo had managed to reach, and walked out to the counter where Cologne sat reading again.  
  
"Goodbye Son-in-law." she called, once again not looking up.  
  
"Never call me that again _Old Ghoul_." Ranma replied in the same icy tone he had used on Shampoo.  
  
Cologne acted nonchalaunt. Inside her organs froze with fear at the power within the words.  
  
He exited the shop. Cologne thought she noticed something on the back of his neck but disregarded it.  
  
"I should've known whatever Shampoo tried wouldn't work." She thought.  
  
She put down the book and pogoed up to Shampoo's room where she found her on her bed asleep. Naked, but asleep.  
  
Taking a second look at her she noticed something. Engraved in her forehead in what appeared to be normal black ink was the English word, "Failed."  
  
"What in the world..?" She thought.  
  
"Damn Shampoo!! Why won't she just give up! I want Akane!" Ranma thought angrily as he walked home. Suddenly a slight pain erupted on the back of his neck. At first it was just a tingle.  
  
And it stayed that way until he had come within twenty yards of the Tendo dojo. Then it erupted into a pain type of pain which even Ranma had never felt before.  
  
He collapsed as the pain washed over him.  
  
"What did... she.. DO!" He cried as he lay on his stomach cluching the back of his neck.  
  
And just as it had started the pain stopped.  
  
Ranma stood and after getting over the scrutiny of a few passerbys quickly ran home.  
  
"I'm home!" He called.  
  
When no one awnsered he quickly ran up to the bathroom. Once there he turned his back to a mirror and glanced with his perifial vision at what was there.  
  
Engraved in what appeared to be normal black ink was the English word. "Passed."  
  
Ranma, however, didn't know English and simply thought of it as odd hieroglyphics from some spell that Shampoo had used. After cursing Shampoo some more he went to find someone who could tell him what it means.  
  
He found Nabiki walking toward the Staircase in the upper hallway.  
  
"What'cha need Ranma?" She asked when he questioned her.  
  
"I need ya to tell me what this means." He replied quickly.  
  
He turned around and pointed at the back of his neck.  
  
"Passed? Passed what?" Nabiki thought.  
  
"5,000 yen." She said casually.  
  
Ranma handed her the money and mumbled something uninteligable under his breath.  
  
"It means Passed." She said.  
  
"Passed? Passed what?" Ranma asked.  
  
"Don't ask me... passed any tests lately?" She asked.  
  
"No... well.. I got out of Shampoo drugging me again.. but that don't count..." He replied. "I do that all the time."  
  
'Though it was REALLY hard this time.' He added as an after thought.  
  
"Well, I can't help you there. All I know is the translation." She replied. She walked on down the hallway and went down the stairs recounting the 5,000 yen, not caring in the slightest about the word on Ranma's back.  
  
After all, it was just ink. Shampoo probably wrote it on his neck as another spell to catch him. Or maybe Happosai made him weak again. It was just magic ink. Nothing more.  
  
After searching the house for a person who could give him information without making his back pocket lighter and finding no one, he remembered that most the family members were gone.  
  
Akane was out with her friends more than likely shopping or something like that.  
  
Kasumi was with Tofu, due to Ranma's matchmaking capabilities. Or what normal people would call dumb luck. Ranma hit Tofu over the head when Kasumi walked into his clinic.  
  
After she walked in Tofu began to twist Ranma's bones into unorthadox shapes as usual. Ranma, being fed up with it, hit the love struck doctor over the head. For some reason something clicked in his brain and he stopped being nervous around Kasumi.  
  
Ranma felt happy that day, although his neck was twisted half off.  
  
Soun was out with his father drunk, as usual, on sake. Who knows which bar he could find them in. Also... why would he WANT to find them?  
  
And Nabiki remained in her room, having given him all the information she could allready.  
  
'Hmph... whatever it is I'll beat it like I always do...' Ranma thought.  
  
Ranma went to the bathroom and got out some soap and water. Of course, he didn't expect the word to wash off the back of his neck as it couldn't **POSSIBLY** be normal ink. But he tried anyway. To his amazement the ink came right off. His neck looked completely normal when he was finished with it.  
  
It was about a quarter till One O'Clock and Ranma decided it would be the best time for a nap.  
  
Nothing else happened the entire day.  
  
When spoken in tales of other people this would be a good sign. However, for Ranma, this sentence would cast a horrible forboding upon the entire town. Nothing happened... "nothing happened" would always lead to "something really big is happening".  
  
Something like this happened before the battle with Saffron. Silence in the town. Silent enough that the birds had a chance to start singing without the cry of "Ranma Saotome Prepare to Die!" interupting their melody.  
  
And it happened again. Something was going to happen and it was going to be something big.  
  
...Ranma slept through it...  
  
-Ranma no baka-  
  
Around six O'Clock Ranma awoke to the aroma of teriyaki chicken meaning Kasumi was home. Definantly not his favorite but it was cooked by Kasumi and therefore the best of it's type.  
  
Ranma inhaled the smell of the chicken and it roused him from the hazy feeling he usually had when he woke up on his own. As soon as he had collected his balance and reclothed himself, he flew down the stairs at speeds bullets would be envious of.  
  
He was in he seat before anyone even saw him.  
  
"Hi... Kasumi what's for dinner?" He asked allready knowing the awnser. Somehow hearing what it was always made it taste better.  
  
"Teriyaki chicken and rice, Ranma. Don't you have a smell for this yet? I've cooked it quite often." Kasumi replied cheerfully.  
  
Ranma nodded. "I'm never sure Kasumi."  
  
Kasumi went back to the Kitchen as Nabiki walked into the Dining Room.  
  
"He Nabiki? Is Akane here?" He asked.  
  
"No she's still out... why?" She asked. Her eyes narrowed making them look the splitting image of a sparrows beak.  
  
"Oh just... figured she may be in the kitchen killing the food." Ranma replied casually, still unable to admit his real reasons.  
  
Nabiki shrugged and took a seat in her favorite place in the world. The couch.  
  
After almost two agonizing minutes of Ranma drumming his fingers on the table waiting Kasumi came out. At exactly that moment Soun and Genma walked in the front door, laughing about something involving the mating rituals of the Saotome clan.  
  
"But Tendo! That could never happen with a Tendo as a wife!" Genma shouted loudly purposly so Ranma could hear it.  
  
They swaggared into view around the corner and collapsed into their seats. Soun falling asleep immediatly. Genma sobering instantly at the thought of Kasumi's food.  
  
"Daddy..." Kasumi said as she laid out the pan with the chicken on it.  
  
She moved to drag him away from his seat and get him to the couch, but Ranma offered to move him himself.  
  
Three seconds later everyone present save Soun was digging into the meal. Ranma and Genma dueling for their own food, not to mention the food on the two girl's plates without them ever noticing.  
  
About half an hour after dinner Akane called on the phone and asked if she could stay over at Sayuri's house for that night. Soun agreed after about ten minutes of Akane bending him to her every whim.  
  
Also after diner Ranma decided to go to the dojo and simply stayed there.  
  
Once again nothing happened during this entire time. Ranma was not even splashed. Now Ranma was begining to notice something was off.  
  
A few too few shouts had occured that day. But he disregaurded it.  
  
Around 10:00 that night he went to bed.  
  
Flashback...  
  
When Shampoo awoke she lay on her bed fully clothed in something she knew she hadn't been in when she'd awnsered the door earlier.  
  
"Wha! Who...! What are you!!!!" Shampoo cried when she noticed a figure standing adjacent to her bed. She was almost afraid of the dark being in at her lower left bedside. It was a man most definantly. But it had a dark aura that was enticing her mind to accept his proposition before he even stated it.  
  
"Shampoo... I need you... to take a test..." It said, trailing the ends of its words.  
  
"Test... Shampoo not want test!" She cried.  
  
"You'll have to take it. Drink this potion... and it will make your dear Airen unable to resist you!" It said.  
  
The aura once again began to antagonize her. Yet she resisted. She didnt' know why she resisted. She wanted her airen to not be able to resist her advances but... something was off.  
  
"Drink...!" It drolled on.  
  
"No! Shampoo never win Ranma that way! He too strong for stupid potion! Win normal way! No more cheating! Shampoo swear not to cheat! Shampoo swear... swear too... Airen..."  
  
She knew she was losing this battle. She had sworn not to try anymore potions or magics. She ever so deeply wanted to win Ranma's trust... and this would be the last straw... but... He told her her Airen couldn't resist. Her airen... couldn't... resist.  
  
She grabbed the potion and drank it.  
  
Suddenly she felt drowsy... lay her head back on her bed. Nothing happened for about five minutes as she regained her composure. The taste of the potion was not so different from alcohol spiked tea except for the fact that it practically knocked her out for five minutes. During those five minutes she could've sworn she'd felt a burning on her forehead but it didn't matter. It stopped hurting quickly enough.  
  
When she reorienated herself she noticed the being was gone. She walked outside. Expecting to have to go get Ranma at the dojo she was mildly surprised to find him downstairs talking with... who was that woman again? Great-mother or something? The old one? Oh well it didn't matter.  
  
"Ranma..." She said with a silk tongue and was once again surprised at the smooth tone she had aquired. Not to mention the grace, that was unatural even for her.  
  
"Shampoo?" The old woman asked. Shampoo simply ignored her as she wasn't important.  
  
"Ranma follow Shampoo..." She said in the same tone. She walked back down the hallway to her room and quickly glaced back noticing Ranma following her. When she entered the room her clothes simply disappeared and she lay on the bed not even thinking about it.  
  
Suddenly her brain began to wake from whatever was happening to it.  
  
"No... no what Shampoo do! NO!" she thought. She soon realized that she was trapped inside her own mind only capable of doing as the potion wanted. She watched as Ranma entered the room.  
  
She watched as she pulled him onto herself unable to do anything. She pleaded with him to forgive her for her mistake. She should have tried harder... She screamed and kicked and squirmed trying to force him off herself, trying to make her body move. For just a second she regained control... all she did was move her eyes... she tured her eyes for the entire time he looked into them into the most pleading look she could possibly give... but it was all in vain.  
  
He backed away. And he glared at her. An awful fiendish glare... Shampooo then knew that she had lost him forever... all because of that "thing" that had given her the potion.  
  
When he exited the room she found herself in complete control again.  
  
She got onto the floor, placed her head on the bed and wept.  
  
It was midnight. Ranma lay sleeping on his futon. His father was not presant as he had fallen asleep on the couch in the living room, to Nabiki's personal dismay.  
  
Suddenly light erupted from the back of Ranma's neck where the word Passed had been. The word was spelled in the bright white light lines that burst from the back of his neck like a bunch of small volcanoes lined up to form a word. Ranma was oblivious.  
  
Meanwhile...  
  
Shampoo screamed.  
  
A black light erupted from her forehead making the word "failed" appeared in a luminous black light.  
  
Every nearby person in every nearby house that wasn't soundproofed, woke with a start. The scream was that of pure terror and pain. However... when they entered Shampoo's room all the found was a girl sleeping on a pillow that appeared to have been thrown in a bucket of water. A girl who had nothing whatsoever on the forehead she cluched so violently. A few burn marks were on the ceiling but no one noticed them.  
  
Shampoo's dreams were as horrible as what happened in real life.  
  
Dream...  
  
Shampoo stood looking out through an enourmous circular window at a room. She soon realized it was her own room! But everything was huge! She was so very small. She wondered what in the world she was standing on. Looking down she saw a white floor. When she turned around she screamed again. A gigantic eye... looking, not at her, but at the door in the room.  
  
The door opened and her Airen appeared. She ran toward the end of the window and ran straight into what felt like nine mile thick clear glass. She banged on the invisible barrier as she watched the events that had happened earlier that day occur from the left eye of her own body. And she screamed again.  
  
Somewhere in the great city of Rome, a man stood looking up at a wrecked colesseum.  
  
He wore a red overcoat that was water resistant to protect him from the rain that was just begining to fall. Under that he had a black pair of jeans and a white A-Shirt. He had a normal blue eye on the right side but his right eye was a magnificent yellow that made his blonde hair seem dull. He looked to be about eighteen with a decent height of 5'10". His face was clear of acne or any such other ailments some teenagers suffer to an almost abnormal extent. There was a lon  
  
The man, however, seemed the perfect fit with the girl his arm was slung around.  
  
The woman also wore a white A-shirt which was only visible at the small upper part of her chest where her matching red overcoat wasn't zipped. Her jeans were cover by the overcoat completely unlike the man who still had his unzipped. She stood about 5'6" with long, black, flowing hair. Her face was as clear as his was to an even more unreal extent. The odd thing was she also had two colored eyes. Only her normal blue eye was on the left side and her yellow eye was on the right. They were almost the same shade exactly.  
  
"Syn...?" The girl asked. "Do you feel it?"  
  
"Of course... Of course I feel it. It's happened again... only... she failed. I never thought it would choose someone who would fail. It doesn't matter though... it found a replacement quickly enough." Syn replied. "Kry.. don't worry I have everything under control. We need to get to Japan within the next two hours.  
  
"Ok... I'll go to Res Tepo and you go to Japan. I'll meet you in Tokyo." Kry replied. "We with both of us, we'll surely be able to prevent the destruction from happening again. Maybe then.. maybe then we'll be able to go on..." She told him. A hint of longing was on the tip of her voice.  
  
Syn tripped over his tongue for a reply but found only the word... "Certainly."  
  
Kry dissappeared.  
  
"Certainly... we can't possibly fail **THIS** time.." Syn mumbled before dissapearing himself.  
  
Yeah I know you guys are all thinking... oh my god he did NOT just come out with ANOTHER fic... but yeah... sorry. I did. I know you wanted The Blessing. Well you can't have it cuz it's NOT DONE!  
  
Don't worry this fic doesn't feature Shampoo! Lata! 


	3. The Endowment

Another Chapter of Pyrelie. Yeah yeah sorry. I need to catch it up as it has a very good first set of chapters. I probably won't be able to continue writing on many other fics for a little while. I've been hooked by a book series that I cannot stop reading (that unfortunantly is very long) Have you ever heard of the Wheel of Time? Yeah... Also I got a new game that I'm playing called Star Ocean III. So My writings will come out a lot slower. Sorry. Only for about three months and then I'll be back at full writing capacity. Don't worry! I'm down but not gone.  
  
Pyrelie  
  
Chapter Two: The Endowment  
  
Ranma's favorite time of day was quickly fading. Three minutes... two minutes... one. Gone!  
  
A small ray of sunlight flickered through the window and landed directly on his closed and sleeping eyes.  
  
"Well... better than the bucket or the pond..." Ranma thought.  
  
He roused himself slowly and made his way down to the bathroom after haphazardly throwing on some blue shorts and a white A-shirt. Once there he let himself bathe in the warmth of the furo as he thought of his things to do.  
  
"Today is the day..." He thought. "Today's the day I tell Akane..."  
  
He reached for the shorts that lay a few feet from the water's edge and searched through the pockets. He pulled out a small black velvet case which held a Dimond ring. Ever since about the time of his battle with Toma he had been saving every last yen he could get his fingers on (and keep Nabiki's off) to buy it. The ring had cost him a grand total of about 90,000 yen.  
  
How he had managed to save it in half a year he could not fathom but he had done it. The main money maker was working at Ucchan's. Sometimes at the Nekohauntan in exchange for a technique or two and a couple thousand yen, but mostly Ucchan's.  
  
He had allready told Ukyo of who he loved most. She had accepted it. Slapped him several million time but accepted it. Definantly cried more than once a day considering how red her eyes were when he came to work there but she accepted it. Complained and pestered him every second he worked there but... she still accepted it and had only recently given up on the pestering. She had lent him almost a fourth of the money and she expected it repayed in triple, which Ranma was glad to do.  
  
Well, not glad by any means but at least it was some compensation to her long lost honor.  
  
The only problem now was... would Akane accept it? Did she even like him, let alone love him? Yeah sure he saved her life a few hundred times. Big deal! There was a good chance that would make Akane more angry than happy.  
  
'No! She loves you... don't think like that! Don't...' He thought. His thoughts however, were inturupted as a small bowl crashed from a high shelf and shattered on the floor.  
  
"...Bad omen?... Nah!" Ranma thought.  
  
Ranma got out of the furo and poored a tub of cold water on himself to rinse off, causing the usual change in form.  
  
After he changed form the back of his neck began to itch horribly. Ranma, being used to pain, barely gave it a second thought knowing it would get worse if he scratched.  
  
"Hmm... I wonder what that word on my neck meant yesterday... Shampoo could have written it I suppose, when she pulled me on top of her... but normally I would notice something being written on the back of my neck.  
  
He shrugged it off and forgot about it seeing as it hadn't seemed to do anything.  
  
After dressing himself he splashed his head with hot water and left the bathroom and went out to the living room. It was a bright Sunday morning. Seeing as Ranma had slept in it was around 11:00 A.M. Leftovers were placed on the table for him to eat.  
  
He sat down and ate the Okonomiyaki Kasumi had prepared. This okonomiyaki in particular, was not as good as Ukyo's however still extreamly good for leftovers made by a first time maker.  
  
Once he was about half way through his meal he heard the distinct sound of Akane's laughter at the front door. The door opened revealing Akane in her usual morning jogging clothes.  
  
"Ok nice to have you over Akane!" Shouted a girl from the front gate. Ranma wasnt' sure who it was but he had thought it was Naomi; A new girl who had only attended Furinkan for about three months and was still finding it hard to get used to all the broken buildings and warcries.  
  
"Thanks for inviting me! I'll have you over here sometime maybe!" Akane called back. "Bye!"  
  
Walking into the door Akane shouted her usual greeting. "Taidama!"  
  
"Hey Akane." Ranma said casually.  
  
Her only reply was a loud "Hmph!" and a freezing shoulder.  
  
"Aw Akane! Are you still mad about that? I'm tellin' ya it wasn't my fault!" Ranma cried.  
  
"Just tell me why you keep going over there then! WHY DO YOU KEEP DOING IT!?" She cried louder still.  
  
Akane was referring to the time two days ago when Ranma left the house simply saying he was going to Uuchans.  
  
"I needed the money!" Ranma yelled back.  
  
"WHAT FOR!!!!" She asked her temper raising even more.  
  
"I... uh.. well..." he stuttered.  
  
"You don't have a reason! You were just going there to see Ukyo!" She cried.  
  
Ranma stood up angrily. "What would be wrong with that!?"  
  
"She's A... a... what... whats... that?" She asked. She pointed at the black leather box sitting on the table right next to his plate.  
  
Ranma looked down. And started. "DAMNIT! WHY'D I LEAVE IT OUT!" He thought.  
  
Akane reached for it but Ranma quickly scooped it up and pocketed it.  
  
"It's nothin!" He denied.  
  
"It... thats a ring isn't it! Your going to propose to Ukyo! AREN'T YOU!" She cried. "I... Ranma I HATE YOU!" She cried and ran out of the front door.  
  
"Akane!" Ranma shouted.  
  
He ran to follow her but suddenly felt an arm on his shoulder.  
  
"Ranma... whats'is about a ring?" Nabiki asked.  
  
"Eh heh huh? What?.. What ring!?" Ranma suttered.  
  
"Your still a bad liar Saotome. Are you actually going to propose to Ukyo?"  
  
"NO!" Ranma yelled loudly.  
  
Nabiki jumped back. Like she had said Ranma was a bad liar. That wasn't a lie.  
  
"Then what?" She asked.  
  
"I was... gonna propose..." Ranma said slowly.  
  
"To..?" She asked expectantly.  
  
"To..." He droned on.  
  
"To... who?" She asked.  
  
"50,000 yen." Ranma stated.  
  
Crack.  
  
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN 50,000 yen!" Nabiki shouted.  
  
"You forget my debts and I'll tell you who I'm proposing too." Ranma said quickly.  
  
Nabiki had been wracking her brain as of late trying to figure out what it was that Ranma had been hiding his money for. She knew whatever it was, it was expensive and paying her off would not be the first on his priority list.  
  
"So you did get a ring!?" She asked.  
  
"Sorry Nabiki but I gotta go. See you!" He cried and jumped out the door onto the roof.  
  
"Who has you Saotome? Who has your heart?" She thought. She came to a certian conclusion. 'Enjoy him Ukyo.'

-  
  
Akane went to a place very well known to Ranma deliberatly so he could find her. She wanted him to find her so she could hit him. And then find her again so she could hit him again!  
  
She hid under the bridge over the river that Ranma always went to when he felt bad or was angry.  
  
She couldn't believe it. Ranma had finally chosen. And it had been Ukyo. After all this time he had chosen UKYO!  
  
"I thought... I thought I at least had a small chance..." She thought. "That maybe under everything else, he loved me. He said he did on Mount Pheonix, damnit! I HEARD him!" She thought.  
  
She put her finger in one of the many hole's Ranma's finger had pushed into a boulder sitting nearby her.  
  
"DAMN HIM!" SHe cried. She punched the boulder and hundreds of smaller rocks flew up into the river.  
  
She curled herself into a ball as her eyes began to water.  
  
"I don't wanna cry over him.." She thought.  
  
Suddenly Ranma hoped down from the bridge.  
  
"... If you were tryin' not to be found... breakin' boulders into the water probably isn't the best way to go about it." He said.  
  
She glared but it didn't hide her red eyes.  
  
"You could've just told me your were proposing to Ukyo!" She cried. "You could've just..!" But he abruptly cut her off.  
  
"Can you just hear me out for a second! Your right Akane." He said.  
  
He walked over and sat down beside her. "It was a ring. And I am proposing."  
  
"Grrr... Real nice way to tell me about it! Why couldn't you have just told me earlier, before you got the ring so I could be ready!? So I could... I thought you... liked me." her voice faded as her emotions changed.  
  
"Akane... if I'd told you before I'd got the ring... the where would the fun in proposing to you be?" Ranma said.  
  
Akane stomach shout up her throat. Her inner organs twisted and shifted inside her. The only advantage was that her heart had melted leaving more room for her lungs.  
  
"To... to me?" She mouthed but she wasn't sure if the words came out. She soon realized she'd begun holding her breath and started to breath slowly.  
  
"Akane, I was going to ask you to go with me to dinner somewhere tonight, but... well..." He pulled out the black box. "I think this place would be slightly better... lotta memories here. Akane Tendo... will you be my REAL fiancee? Will you marry me?"  
  
Akane was now certain her face was blue with holding her breath. She couldn't fathom how Ranma was holding such good composure.  
  
"But... why did... why? Ucchans.."  
  
"I needed money to buy this... it really wasn't that cheap. Ukyo allready knows what I was gonna do and she accepted it and let me work for the money. She still angry but she's happy for you." He said. "Havn't you noticed i've been paying for my meals at Ukyo's?"  
  
"He wants to marry ME! ME!!! But he calls me a tomboy every day! He... I call him an Idiot every day! He... still wants to marry me! How in the hell is he keeping his composure?! This has gotta be as hard for him as for me!"  
  
"Gomen nasai... gomen Ranma... I didn't know... I.."  
  
She was cut off again by him.  
  
"This thing is gettin' kinda heavy Akane," He said stupidly. Akane suddenly realized that Ranma had at some point opened the box revealing a very expensive looking golden band ring. Fortunantly this comment had the intended effect. The tension was broken.  
  
Akane looked into his eyes. No... he wasn't nearly as composed as she had thought. His eyes had a sort of... hoping in them. Fear in them. He was scared. Scared that she would say no. Of course she wouldn't, but all the same.  
  
Akane had fallen in love with Ranma a long time ago. Long before their adventures with herb. Even before Toma and Kirin. Possibly even before Happosai had showed up. There was no way she could say no to this.  
  
"Ranma no baka! Yes I'll marry you!" She snatched the box out of his hands and pulled out the ring delacatly.  
  
Thanking whatever upper beings there where that had finally let him do this, and thanking Ukyo and Kasumi for all the training he had gone through to make him hold his composure and not say anything stupid he let out a long and contented sigh.  
  
"If I remember right... the guy is supposed to put the ring on the girls finger but... I'm not sure so..." She abruptly handed him the ring back and he placed it on her left hand ring finger.  
  
As soon as the ring was on she embraced him in a very tight hug... "Ranma, you said it before at mount pheonix... I love you..." She whispered into his ear.  
  
She pulled away from him and kissed him lightly on the lips.  
  
Ranma's eyes had closed when that happened as had Akanes... after a few moments of that one kiss they backed away.  
  
"... I love you too, Akane." Ranma said opening his eyes. "But I know this isn't gonna last too long before were fighting again so before one of us says somethin' stupid... wanna go out for dinner with me tonight?" He asked.  
  
"I had.. I had plans but, I think I can cancel them this time." She said. "This, is going to take soem getting used to."  
  
"Eh... no kidding" Ranma replied.  
  
"Well... I, guess we can go home now..." She said.  
  
"Yeah."  
  
An air of nervousness had sprung up around them.  
  
"Well... Akane you go home. I got, I got some problems to solve." Ranma said.  
  
"Like what?" She asked.  
  
"Well, main one on my mind is Mousse. If I have any thought in the matter he won't attack me again.  
  
"And Shampoo right?" Akane asked. She raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you are still going to let that bimbo glomp you! This is really serious to me if you didn't know."  
  
"Problem has allready been solved." Ranma replied with his usual confident attitude.  
  
"...Ok Ranma. I hope so..." She said. They stood and walked up to the road above, hand in hand.  
  
"I'll be back at seven O'Clock tonight and well go wherever you want." Their hands came apart and they began to walk of to their destinations. when Ranma shouted back, "And I'll... try... to use table manners... Try!"  
  
Akane giggled.  
  
"Ranma... hee... I must be the happiest woman alive today... He better let me still call him Baka. ... I really hope this isn't just some trick..."

-

Ranma walked into the Neko-haunten with his best poker face on. Actually it wasn't. He was still angry with Shampoo and if she was in here then he would simply ignore her. If she glomped him he would not be so kind.  
  
Fortunantly Shampoo wasn't present.  
  
"Ranma!" Cologne shouted when he walked it. "What did you do to my great-granddaughter?"  
  
"Huh? I turned her down again. What else, ghoul?" Ranma acted as if he hadn't noticed but he had. Cologne had called him Ranma instead of Son-in-Law.  
  
"Ranma something happened to Shampoo. She locked her door, and when I broke it open, Shampoo lay on her bed. When I asked her what was wrong she asked me who I was! What did you do, Ranma?"  
  
"All I did was leave the room. She used some sort of spell on me that compelled me to sleep with her. I left the room."  
  
"Are there any details? Anything that was odd about the situation?" Cologne asked anxiously.  
  
"No... well her eyes really didnt' fit what she was doing. Her eyes looked... sad in some way. But other than that..." Suddenly Shampoo appeared from around the corner.  
  
"Great-grandmother! I have great nap I work now!... Ranma... Gomen nasai. Shampoo wish you happy marrige to Akane." Shampoo said cheerfully. She walked back into the changing room where her work clothes were held.  
  
"... Odd." Cologne said.  
  
"She seems fine to me but how did she know...? Oh well. Not that I mind or anything but why did you stop calling me Son-in-Law?" Ranma asked.  
  
Cologne sighed. "I watched you under the bridge of course. I felt Tendo-san there, very angry and figured you'd be following. Also... I ran out of tricks. Your an illusive catch sonny." She said. I hearby nullify all engagements to the Amazons. Please accept my apologies. And I suppose whatever was wrong with Xian Pu was just denial.  
  
"Uh... well, guess that solves what I came here for. Seems sorta sudden? Is it another law? Outsider male proposes to outsider female voids kiss of marrige?" He asked.  
  
"No... no I just ran out of tricks. If you didn't fall to whatever Shampoo used yesterday then I can't win you." She replied.  
  
Cologne failed to mention that his voice the previous day had downright scared her. And it was rare that she was scared. She didn't want someone who could scare her in the tribe. Also, with him in Joketsuzoku it could start a civil war between the males and females. No... no that wouldn't do.  
  
"What did you originally come here for?" She asked.  
  
"Mousse. But I guess you'll take care of that?" He asked.  
  
"Of course. Good luck with Tendo-san Ranma." She sighed.  
  
"Now would you like one last free Ramen? Because after this I'm charging you..."  
  
Ranma happily agreed. 

-

"Something is up. Something HAS to be wrong. No way they would give up so easily. NO WAY!" Ranma thought.  
  
Ranma was about half way from the Neko-haunten to the bridge when suddenly his danger sense went berserk. And all danger seemed to be coming from above.  
  
Looking up all he saw was clouds. Sure the clouds were forming a very peculular swirl much like the formation of the Hiryuu Shoten Ha with the center pointed at him but they were just clouds. Sure there was a white light formed at the center there but they were just clouds. Sure the dot was quickly begining to strech the sky downward toward the earth but... wait. That's not normal.  
  
"I can't move!" He thought. And he couldn't. His arms wouldnt' move, nor his legs.  
  
Things went out of movability slowly. after that. Torso, neck, jaw, and finally eyes. He lost control of all of them as his back became arched and he stared up into the sky. The beam came closer as if stretching the sky toward him. And behind the beam an array of light swirled out in a circular patterns that had shifted from the spiral swirl to a form much like a target board of dark and darker clouds, mixed with some rings of blue sky and white light.  
  
And suddenly, the sky recoiled. In flung backwards into its normal position and the light was launched toward Ranma.  
  
Ranma stared at it... helpless as it hurdled toward him and angry at his helplessness. Whatever that thing was, he HAD to get out of its way. He pulled. He forced himself with all of his might, all of his Ki and all of his willpower to move.  
  
One inch, two. Four inches. Six. Each step harder then the last he scrunched his way out. Suddenly he was zapped in a way that made it feel like he was hit by a bullet train. A vortex of blue light rose about him and formed a tube stright up the the beam.  
  
He was suddenly in the middle of the vortex again, with the light headed directly for him again. He hadn't been moved. He just appeared there. He tried to move again and successfully moved an inch to the left before he became entranced by the light. It was becoming smaller. It was about the size of a basketball... baseball. Golf ball. Moth ball... spec. It was a foot from his face and still moving at the same speed but that few milliseconds seemed to last an hour. It slowly inched itself from the top of his arm reach to his face and entered his un-naturally unblinking eye.  
  
The vortex dissapeared and he blasted upward into the sky. His last thought before blackness took him was, "Akane... Gomen nasai."  
  
A few moments later he landed with a soft thud on the grass on the far east side of the public park... half a mile away. 

-

"He... he stood me up... I can't... he, he wouldn't!" Akane stuttered. She had had the ring examined by a professional and found that it was most definantly real. But then, why would Ranma not be there? He had scheduled the dinner!  
  
It was about seven twenty five and Ranma was not at the house. Akane had managed to keep his proposal a secret, just in the off chance something like this happened. And sure enough, he did this. "Ranma not baka! I hate-!"  
  
RIIIIIIING!  
  
The telephone rang.  
  
Akane walked over to it, cursing about not being able to properly curse at Ranma and picked it up.  
  
"Hello?" She asked.  
  
"Hello is this miss Akane Tendo?" A man's voice asked. It was a deep voice that Akane held no recognition for.  
  
"Yes. Who is this?" Akane asked anxiously.  
  
"Ma'am. I'm a doctor at the Nerima medical facility. We have a man here identified as Ranma Saotome. We have confirmed that he had been staying with you. Is this true?"  
  
"The hospital! Why! What.. what happened?" She cried. "Yes... yes he is staying with me, us."  
  
"Ma'am, he was found on the eastern side of the park with his eyes swelled shut and a burn mark across the back of his neck. Someone burned the english word passed into the back of his neck I guess. It sure seems like an awfully mean joke though. He also has a pretty big bump on the head. I'd say its from a fall of some sort." The man droned on.  
  
"Is he allright? Will he be ok?" She asked with a still anxious edge to her voice.  
  
"Oh yes ma'am. This boy has the most amazing recovery rate i've ever seen. I could actually watch his eyes heal as it happened. I just wanted to let you know. He'll be up and running like normal in the morning. Also I think that burn mark will dissapear too. It is allready much less visible than it was half an hour ago."  
  
"I'll be right over. Thanks for calling!" She cried as she slammed the phone down on the hook.  
  
"What was that all about Akane?" Nabiki asked from her spot at the table.  
  
Nabiki knew someone had asked Akane on a date that night and that she had been stood up but she had no idea who. And at the moment she just didn't feel like getting the information out because Akane was being so, uptight about it. She'd been nervous ever since she'd returned earlier that day and Nabiki felt she could do without being bothered for once. Though she did seem in much better of a mood.  
  
"Ranma's hurt! They found him in the park unconcious! I'm going to the hospital!" Akane cried.  
  
"Akane-chan! Since when did you care about Ranma?" Nabiki asked.  
  
Akane looked down. And then back up and smiled. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the ring and in one fluid motion, slipped it on her finger.  
  
"Ever since he proposed to me, Nabiki." She said and with that, rushed out the door.  
  
Nabiki was always calm, and cool, and collected. She never lost her composure. Never lost her temper. Never lost her control. And NEVER lost her facial expression.  
  
Except now.  
  
Half an hour later Nabiki's eyes were still wide and showed no signs of having blinked within the last half hour.  
  
Kasumi smiled. "It's about time!" She thought and began to hum again. "Oh Nabiki-chan! Your drooling! No! NO NOT ALL OVER THE FLOOR!"  
  
"Akane... Sorry I couldn't make it tonight. I, got held up." Ranma said from the bed.  
  
"What happened Ranma? Was it Shampoo's great-grandmother? Or Mousse?" She asked.  
  
"As if I could lose to Mousse. No it was, something else. I.. I... OW!!!!!!!" He suddenly grasped his eyes and shut them tight and began to squirm all over the bed.  
  
"Ranma! Doctor! Something happeneing!" Akane cried. But there was no awnser. The door had been shut tight and seemed to be sealed with somethign other than just wood.  
  
Ranma writhed around cluching his eyes and moaning for a few minutes as Akane knew of nothing to do to help him. And suddenly he stopped. His back leaned over looking down at his feet he slowly let his hands off his eyes.  
  
"A... Akane... are you there?" He asked.  
  
"Of course I'm here!" She cried.  
  
"I..."  
  
He slowly opened his eyes. And she backed away.  
  
"Ranma... your eyes... they're... they're gold!" She cried.  
  
"They sting like he..." But he abruptly stopped speaking when he glanced in the mirror. There, staring right back at him, were two golden eyes, that glowed with a neon flash in them.  
  
"What.. happened to you Ranma?" Akane asked. 

"I don't know but something... hit me... and made me... I... I dunno I feel like a billion yen whether I look it or not. My eyes don't even hurt anymore... I... I can't even remember what the pain felt like." Ranam replied.

"....I hope your ok Baka." She said.

End Chapter

Sorry if the yen is off. I'm going from anywhere from three hundred to four hundred dollars as the cost of the ring but i'm not certian by any means. If anyone knows differently then please tell. Hope you like the chapter. One of my most romantic ones yet. I just realized I don't think I have the genre of this fic in romance. Better change that!


End file.
